Introduction
Today it is difficult to answer unequivocally the question of why man needs art. Some argue that art exists to beautify life: these people aim to discover beauty as an eternal law of being. Others believe that art should educate; they search for works for the good, the benefit, and justice. The rest are convinced that art is a way of knowing the world, so their goal is to find and fix the truth. The criteria for defining art are different: they depend on the specific culture in which the artist creates, the place and time of production, and the perception of the work. Thus, for a more detailed study of the topic, this paper compared two works of art from different cultures, Chinese and Japanese, and summarized the main results.
Comparing Chinese Art and Japanese Art
Art is a special kind of human form-creative activity, designing figurative and symbolic structures with aesthetic, cognitive, and communicative functions. At the same time, the goals of these functions may differ from culture to culture and from time to time. The social role of a man was considered a value in Chinese civilization. The artists did not try to paint the details of a person’s appearance but tried to reflect their spirit. The brightest manifestation of Chinese cultural originality is the ideographic nature of Chinese writing. Landscape occupies an essential part in painting: despite its reality, it generalizes observations of the environment (Frank, 2004). Japanese artwork and architecture initially developed in an original way but gradually absorbed the influence of the Far East. The further one moves in studying Japanese art, the more certain it has its origins in the Chinese art. Nevertheless, Japanese art is characterized by a more profound sense of nature, vivid imagination, delicate taste. However, it is impossible to consider the development of Japanese culture separately from the Chinese.
Comparison of the Works
Chinese painting surprisingly combines artistic and literary art: the pictures have rows of hieroglyphics explaining the subject’s essence. Such an example is Dai Xi’s Landscapes, created in 1848 (Landscapes, 2021). The Chinese landscape here and in general is a separate subject. It is fantastic and multifaceted, summarizing centuries of observation of nature and its phenomena. Mountains and water are the traditional backgrounds, where mountains symbolize the male active principle “yang” and water is the passive “yin,” reflecting the feminine essence. The work is ambiguous and full of symbolism, imagery, and allegory. Paintings and drawings of many Chinese artists often conceal a hidden message, which is difficult to notice without knowing the background of the people, culture.
As for Japanese painting, it is more vivid than Chinese. Pictures in the form of scrolls often decorated the walls and tables of ceremonial rooms. One such work is Under the wave off Kanagawa, created in 1830-32 by Katsushika Hokusai (Under the wave off Kanagawa, 2021). Full of pride in his country, the artist reflects the beauty and power of the nature of his homeland and the greatness of the spirit of the people. Such a leitmotif is often seen in many works of Japanese masters. The author’s message is not to depict the material world but to appeal to the inner. Japanese painting is often mysterious and mystical and conveys not any action but rather a state of mind.
Conclusion
Man needs art to represent the world, to depict it, and to preserve it. Due to the diversity of types, genres, histories, everyone can find something in the art to make his life richer. It fills human existence in culture with value and meaning. Accordingly, it is vital to study background and develop the abilities necessary for communicating with art. It can give a person exactly as much as he can take through understanding, experience, and feeling.
References
Frank, P. (2004). Artforms. Pearson Prentice Hall.
Landscapes. (2021). The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Under the wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura), also known as The Great Wave, from the series Thirty-six views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei). (2021). The Metropolitan Museum of Art.